


trust in our strength

by bbyseoul



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Alternative Universe - Kingdom, Alternative Universe - Non Idol, Angst, Crack, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Crack, Gen, Princes & Princesses, lapslock, non idol, we got prince jeonghan and his loyal 12 knights!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-21
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-07-25 20:06:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7546083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bbyseoul/pseuds/bbyseoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>prince jeonghan always trusted his knights.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. heroes will always be remembered

**Author's Note:**

> a prince au  
> basically jeonghan is a prince and the rest of seventeen are knights. it's not really a korean kind of king / queen theme. it's just some random place with random thoughts its modernized but kind of olden days? I tried to keep it as lively as I could.

"i don't want too." 

" _prince_."

"call me _jeonghan_. we're the same age!" jeonghan whines, "stop acting like im my father."  

jisoo sighs, "you really need to go to this lunch. it's important for the council and to help you with the heir." 

"what are you and the knights going to do?" jeonghan asks, "like what are you guys doing?" 

"roam and protect the castle. that's what we always do." jisoo explains with a smile. 

jeonghan pulls his bed sheets around him as he looks up at jisoo, "can I run your guys routine with you? I have nothing to do after this lunch."

jisoo shrugs, the routine varied each day it could either be dangerous or simple. they rarely knew themselves.

"we'll see." jisoo said, "just. come eat okay? im trying to be nice." 

jisoo helps jeonghan out his bed, "you're always nice to me. you're _my_ knight." 

jisoo smiles softly as he exits to wait for jeonghan to dress himself and prepare for the lunch. he was feeling quite accomplished to be able to get him out of bed. 

"did you get the prince out of bed?" mingyu asks, "that quick?"

"yeah. it wasn't that hard," 

"really? it took jihoon an hour to get him out of bed and he put up a big fight." mingyu chuckles as he continues his stroll. 

jeonghan shortly comes from his room. his charcoal colored hair was laid smoothly and tucked behind his ears. he wore a loose white button up and black slacks. 

he still was barefoot which drove jisoo crazy but he was dressed and looking presentable. that's all he needed to do.

"are you gonna yell at me to put on shoes? tell me how dirty it is? how my feet can get cut up and i can get ill? mhm?" jeonghan says teasingly as he sticks his bare foot towards jisoo.

jisoo rolls his eyes, "I was told to just escort the prince to lunch and get him out of bed. you can catch a cold if you'd like, prince. that's all on you."

"ah jisoo, what do I have to do to get you to call me jeonghan? I don't go around calling you 'knight' i have human decency to call you by your birth name. why not do the same for me?" 

"go put your shoes on. and i might consider it." jisoo retorts, he gets a pout from jeonghan but a nod in agreement.

he quickly grabs his shoes to put on before heading down to the dinning hall. many of the kings and queens from lands all over were gathered for the lunch. 

it was a lunch to discuss jeonghan and his heir with his family. it would discuss the time he needed to focus on the government and business side of his castle. along with the citizens and his people in the castle. 

jisoo knew jeonghan wouldn't be interested in this topic. jeonghan lived freely as the prince. he'd roam with the knights, play tag with the kids outside the castle. he didn't like to live lavishly. 

jisoo sat with the other knights as the lunch had began. he kept an eye out for jeonghan to make sure he was paying attention. jisoo watches slightly as jeonghan presses his face into the side of his palm. his eyes falling slowly, his eyelashes fluttering slowly. 

"he's going to fall asleep." hansol says, "he's going to do it."

"have some faith in him. he wouldn't disrespect his heir and the other royalty here. right?" the newest knight, chan asks "he wouldn't do that?" 

all eyes fell on seungcheol and jisoo, they were the first two knights that were sworn in to protect jeonghan. they knew jeonghan better than his own parents. 

"he's fallen asleep sometimes but never in such a serious setting." seungcheol mumbles, "hopefully he can wake himself up."

jisoo nods as the 12 of them direct their attention to jeonghan. his jaw started to droop, his eyes were completely shut. he was really asleep. 

"no. no. no." wonwoo mummers, "nobody's noticed but what do we do!?"

"first, remain calm." jisoo assures them, "second. leave it up to me." 

jisoo stands up quietly. he tries to not attract too much attention to him even though the royals were all discussing serious issues. he squeezes behind the kitchen staff to reach for the refreshments. he finds a container of ice and slicks his hand up with fresh chill of ice. jisoo can feel the eyes of the knights on him as he makes his way closer to jeonghan's seat.

he brushes his hand up against jeonghan's neck swiftly. jeonghan jolts up with a soft groan, "what in the _world_." 

jisoo shushes him, "you need to stay awake, jeonghan. this is important for you and your family." 

"I was having a really good dream. thanks a lot." 

"whatever. just stay awake." jisoo tells him, "you can do this, jeonghan. i believe in you."

jisoo thinks he sees blush appearing on jeonghan's sculpted cheekbones but it could also be from his palm print. quickly returning to his seat, he receives handshakes from the others. telling him that he really handled that situation calmly and smoothly. he was the one of the first knights for a reason. the lunch ended smoothly with no more of jeonghan falling asleep or groaning too loudly. 

"okay, who's run am i going on?" jeonghan asks, he was sitting with the knights in the living space. 

"what?" minghao says, "you like our runs?"

"it's the most exciting part of my day, hao hao." jeonghan smiles, "you think a prince like me can roam freely like you guys?"

"why are you acting like you don't do it anyway, jeonghan?" soonyoung laughs, "you go as you wish constantly."

jisoo couldn't deny that. he had once found jeonghan in the town with some kids around their age. they were playing kickball and jeonghan was proudly running around the field. he hadn't seen jeonghan that happy in awhile.

"jisoo?" jeonghan calls, "are you coming?"

jisoo recollects his thoughts and follows jeonghan outside. he must have gotten pinned with jeonghan again for his runs. he always comes with jisoo but he doesn't mind. 

"what are you out of it today? are you okay?" jeonghan asks, "you're usually so on top of everything." 

"i was just thinking about how you always come with me for these. why is that?" jisoo questions, he adjusts his sword tightly to his side. 

jeonghan takes his hand through his hair slowly, "because."

jisoo rolls his eyes as he bows to the other castle workers, "you can't just say because." 

jeonghan waves to workers as they pass by, "your runs are always interesting." 

jisoo cocks his head at the comment. the 12 of them have similar runs its rare when a knight has a dangerous run. seungcheol once caught a thief on his run who had broken into the kitchen for the exquisite foods. jeonghan let him take some foods, he told seungcheol that he was just trying to feed his family. jeonghan was always too nice for his own good. he treated thieves like family he's usually give them what they would want to take. he'd come with an excuse to why he gave it away, it drove jisoo and his dad insane but he kept doing it. 

"it's just me walking around the castle and outside the castle to make sure everything is order. nothing is really too interesting about that, jeonghan." jisoo tells him, "you live a more interesting life than me."

jeonghan shrugs as he sticks his hands deep in his pockets. "my life is boring. even though I might live like I please, I truly live how my father yearns for me too." 

"I can't do stuff like this. I like hanging out with you guys because you remind me of kids outside the castle. you all have a story and you don't treat me like a prince. one of the kids outside told me, _'stop acting like a peasant. it's insulting.'_ and i don't try to be insulting or insensitive. i just want to be normal." jeonghan sighs softly, "i just want to not have this title above me that I'm automatically better than everybody." 

jisoo nods along with his words. he can't imagine what jeonghan gone through, jisoo wasn't a prince. he was one of the first knights appointed to jeonghan's side. he moved into the castle at 13 and has been his loyal friend and knight ever since that day. he never saw jeonghan as a princely figure. jeonghan was never strict or coldhearted to jisoo, he treated jisoo with love and compassion. jisoo admired that about jeonghan with every knight that was appointed to jeonghan. he never acted hatefully to any of them, chan had joined the knights two winters ago and jeonghan treats him like a little brother. 

they were family. jeonghan had opened up every vulnerable side to them expressing his worries and concerns.  sides that nobody in the kingdom has seen from him. 

"you don't have a title above me." jisoo says realizing he got caught in his thoughts, "I'm the first knight. you ever fight in a battle? mhm?" 

"yes! grade school! i got in a nasty fight over paints. i was sneezing blue paint for weeks." jeonghan gasps dramatically, "how _dare_ you bring up my trauma. do all knights hurt who they protect like this?" 

jisoo laughs, "I'd never hurt you. you know that."  

"I know. you or the knights would never hurt me." jeonghan replies quietly, "you guys care too much to ever hurt me." 

jisoo pats his friends shoulder, "that's true. always remember that. we might be your protectors but we are always your friends first." jeonghan grins, his cheekbones rose to push his eyes to form a crescent shape. he couldn't help but laugh at his cheerful state he liked to see jeonghan like that.  "thanks. that just made me really happy." jeonghan laughs loudly, "it was cheesy but made me so happy." 

the two continue to reminisce and laugh for the rest of jisoo's shift. they meet up with the rest of the Knights at the gate who usually wait to do their outside run together.

"you guys look happy. what happened did jeonghan catch another thief?" seungkwan teases. 

"did he see another worker in need?" seokmin asks, "help a child in need?"

"ya don't tease him! he can be happy and so can jisoo!" junhui defends, "let's just hurry up this run so we can return home and relax, mhm?"

they all yell yes in agreement before unlatching the gate to the town, they separated in small groups to be able to finish up faster. 

"can we stop by the market?" jeonghan asks jisoo and seungcheol, "I want to buy something for maid hyejung. she helped me with my coursework and i want to thank her with some new groceries."

jisoo and seungcheol couldn't say no because they both liked maid hyejung and jeonghan wanted to spend lavishly for somebody. the two guided jeonghan to the nearest market, it was past noon so many of the towns people were there. they'd wave to jisoo and seungcheol and bow towards jeonghan. 

"knight! knight! why is the prince out?" a citizen calls out, "shouldn't he be in the castle?"

"he likes to think he's a knight." seungcheol says teasingly getting a nudge from jeonghan, "he does our runs with us." 

jisoo liked having jeonghan on their runs, he liked being besides jeonghan. he wouldn't ever admit that to his face though. he had too much pride to let know jeonghan he likes his company and wants him by his side all the time. plus, jeonghan would not let jisoo live it down if he admitted that.  before jisoo could continue the conversation with the town people, he hears a loud sharp cracking noise. seungcheol reacts first by running over to see jeonghan bent down on the floor, his hair fell down in his face. 

"what's going on?!" jisoo and seungcheol yell in unison, jisoo's hand fell on his sword. the vendor was a bit bigger than jisoo and he would need to protect himself and jeonghan.

"he wouldn't get out the way of that thief and got hit. i did not do anything i warned him to move and he wouldn't move." the vendor explains, "i counted for him to move and he protected that thief." 

why was jeonghan so caring towards thieves? jisoo could die and still not have an answer from him. jisoo kneels next to jeonghan to push his hair out of his face. his cheek was swelling up and his eyes were glassy with tears. 

"is he telling the truth?" jisoo asks, "you didn't move out the way right?"

jeonghan nods in the palm of jisoo's hand, "he was only six. he hadn't eaten in days. so I gave him the apple and offered to pay but the vendor still wanted to strike him." jeonghan cries, "I-I couldn't just let a child get hit."

seungcheol and jisoo help jeonghan off of the stone flooring, jisoo flattens a bill on the counter near the register. 

"you'll be receiving an summon to the castle soon. be ready." jisoo sneers, "the king will not accept this." 

jeonghan was silent the rest of the way to castle, the knights had finished their duties for the day. they cocked their heads at jeonghan's demeanor. 

"what happened?" jihoon whispers, "why is his cheek swelled?"

"he got hit." seungcheol says

"by who!?" hansol yells

"I'll ring him by the neck!" seungkwan barks, "he can't do that!"

"especially to the prince! how dare he." minghao sneers, "what a coward."

"is he okay!?" junhui whispers, "he isn't too upset?"

jisoo shakes his head, "he was protecting a starved child who wanted an apple to eat. he paid for the apple but the vendor wanted to punish the child. knowing jeonghan he wouldn't move." the 10 of them sigh in unison. they all share the same grim expressions.

"that does sound like something he'd do." chan whispers 

"it truly does." soonyoung and seokmin say, "should somebody check on him?"

"I will. I was the one who told the man that his father would contact him." jisoo explains, "I'll be back." 

"good luck!" wonwoo says, the boys all clap and mutter small good lucks. 

jisoo receives a bag of ice from the kitchen and finds jeonghan in his bed. as usual. he was still fully dressed but his face was pressed in the covers. jisoo creeps onto the opposite side of the bed to be able to apply the ice to his swelled cheek. jeonghan winces at the sudden coldness, he tries not to move too quickly. 

"you need to ice it." jisoo tells him, "you're the prince and too handsome to have a beat up face."

jeonghan rolls his eyes and lets jisoo hold the ice to his cheek, "was I in the wrong?"

jisoo arches his brow, "about what?"

jeonghan groans, "about the kid. he really needed food, jisoo. he was skinny and i could see his ribs between his shirt fabric. i wanted to buy him more food but after the vendor saw me and hit me. he ran before i could help."

"don't beat yourself so much. you weren't in the wrong and you did help somebody this day. I just wish we could have been there before you got slapped." jisoo mummers, "we could have done something."

jisoo could have pinned the vendor down with the help of seungcheol or suggested a more calmer idea. he could have done so much but he wasn't focused. they weren't doing their number one job of protecting jeonghan.

"hey! i got hit. we don't need two pouters in the room. it's okay. you guys trust me enough and I always get myself in trouble. But it's okay. My cheek will heal and I will be better. don't be too upset." jeonghan tells him, he smiles slowly underneath the ice pack. 

"Okay I won't." jisoo smiles back at him, he knew he couldn't argue with jeonghan. 

"Also. don't tell my dad about a summon. I'm gonna tell the vendor tomorrow he won't be summoned and he will be safe." jeonghan says, "he was only doing his job."

"why won't we summon him?"

"because you and seungcheol will get blamed for it and punished. I don't want that. I don't want you guys to get hurt. It's my turn to protect you guys." jeonghan says, barely audible. 

his cheek was flushed underneath the ice and jisoo couldn't tell if he was embarrassed or just cold. 

"okay, i won't tell." jisoo grins, maybe jeonghan truly was a knight himself as well. 


	2. all knights must bleed to seal their devotion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jisoo and seungcheol became knights

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow i haven't updated in awhile! i was trying to figure out how i wanted to add onto this AU. i plan to make these shorter but please read it all i tried my best :-)

jisoo had his first encounter with jeonghan when he was eight. 

jisoo didn't know who jeonghan was, he didn't pay attention to the government or royalty. his biggest worry was what he'd be having for dinner. 

jeonghan was walking around the shops lonely and looking sad. jisoo was always taught to help when people needed it and he looked like he needed help.

"hello?" jisoo asks, "you. with the long hair." 

jeonghan turned confused, "my hair isn't long. yours is short."

jisoo shrugs, "why are you crying? it's sunny, it's been storming all week. you should be happy." 

jeonghan has rubbed his eyes irritably, "i'm not crying, you brat!" 

jisoo stepped a foot closer to be able to see jeonghan's tear stained cheeks, "yes you are. you shouldn't lie. my mom says lying is what criminals do. are you a criminal?"

jeonghan arched his brow, "no? do you not know who I am?" 

jisoo takes another look at him. he had pretty hazelnut colored hair that fell onto his small shoulders. he had a beige t-shirt on that was stained with some type of paint. he wore jean shorts and some scuffed up shoes. he looked like a kid in his class. 

"do you go to my school?"

"no i don't go to school." jeonghan replies

"WHAT? REALLY!" jisoo yells gripping onto jeonghan's shoulders, "that's so cool."

jeonghan cocks his head, "i mean i go to school. it's just not in the town." 

it was jisoo's turn to be confused. what did he mean? there was only a few schools and if he didn't go to school in town. where did he go?

"i study in the castle." jeonghan explains, "the big stone castle."

"wow you must be smart." jisoo says sadly, "i've never been to the castle is it nice?"

"very big. has nice food and it always smells like lavender. you should visit sometime." jeonghan smiles, "will you be my friend?"

jisoo nods, "im jisoo hong."

"jeonghan yoon."

 

jisoo ran into jeonghan later that month, it was the anniversary of their kings swear in for the crown and they had a parade. 

jisoo always liked parades. he'd get candy and cool toys for free. what was there not to like about parades?

the kings float was the last to go by with the king and his big crown and the pretty queen. but jisoo recognized the boy who was perched on the queens knee.

jeonghan was tossing small trinkets to the kids, he was smiling widely and laughing so loudly that jisoo could hear from the ground.

"why is that boy up there?" jisoo asks his mom, "he lives in the town. i met him!" 

his mom thought it was one of jisoo's many jokes, she smiles softly at her imaginative son. "that's jeonghan yoon. he's the king and queen's eldest son. you remember king yoon right?"

"no. but he's the prince? i met him. he was crying in town!" jisoo says, "he called me a brat and everything." 

his mom continues laughing as she collects the candy that the prince threw at him. 

"enjoy the sweets, jisoo!" jeonghan calls as he waves goodbye. 

"i told you! i know him! i don't lie! jisoo cheers as he unwraps the chocolate egg.

 

jisoo and jeonghan kept in touch as much as they could. he found out that jeonghan was the prince but it never bothered him. jeonghan had been in town and jisoo pulled his hair and teased him like a school friend.

jeonghan loved it. he had a younger brother but his brother was a newborn and couldn't really do anything. so jeonghan liked when jisoo would tease him and teach him how to play tag. 

"you should meet seungcheol. we're all the same age. he's really good at hide and seek. have you ever played?"

jeonghan shook his head as he bit into the apple slices jisoo's mom had set out. he hadn't really heard of any of the games jisoo had mentioned. 

"basically you have the seeker, he or she counts to 10 and while they're counting. the hiders, hide but not too far that's dangerous. and then the seeker has to find the hiders. make sense?" jisoo asks, he knew jeonghan probably didn't know much about the game but he hoped he'd enjoy it.

jeonghan nods, "where is seungcheol does he live far?" 

jisoo shakes his head, "he lives next door. let's go meet him okay?"

jeonghan smiles and follows jisoo outside with his hands filled with apples. he really liked the apples. 

seungcheol was outside with his dog, seungcheol was muddy and covered in grass. he was always doing something that made him dirty. 

"seungcheol! i have a new friend." jisoo says, "his name is jeonghan."

"jeonghan, this is seungcheol. he's my best friend." jisoo smiles, "let's be nice to each other."

"aren't you the prince?" seungcheol asks arching a brow, "what are you doing out here?" 

"why does it matter?" jeonghan mumbles with a mouth full of food. 

"do you have his moms apples?" seungcheol asks looking at jeonghan's full hands. 

"give me one and i won't bother you about being a prince." seungcheol tells him, he holds out his hand and smiles eagerly as his hand was filled with apple slices. 

"do you wanna play hide and seek?" jisoo asks, "i'll be the seeker."

seungcheol agrees and chains his pup onto his fence before following the boys. the three spoke of school (it really interested jeonghan), jisoo's moms apples and dogs. 

jisoo told jeonghan to not wander too far and stay in a respective area. he started to count loudly and couldn't stop smiling as he heard them run. 

jisoo quietly roamed the area for jeonghan and seungcheol. seungcheol always hides in trees so jisoo made sure to look up in the branches. jisoo's thinking was cut off by a scream, it was loud and shrill. it was echoing off of the trees, jisoo thought it sounded like jeonghan so he followed.

seungcheol was bent down to jeonghan, he was crying as seungcheol tried to calm him down. 

"what's happening?" jisoo asks, "what happened?"

"shush." seungcheol says pointing to jeonghan's ankle. jisoo looks down to see a thin but large snake tight around jeonghan's ankle.

"he was hiding too far into the forest. we just gotta get it off without it biting him." seungcheol says, "we need fire." 

"we don't have time for fire." jisoo replies, "it's on his ankle tight."

jeonghan's lips were quivering and his face was stained with tears. jisoo wanted to help his friend as much as he could. 

"seungcheol, hold his hands okay?" jisoo says, "make sure he doesn't move too quick." 

seungcheol nods and holds jeonghan by his arms. jisoo peers at the snake constricting jeonghan's ankle, he was hissing softly at jisoo.

jisoo was scared but more scared that jeonghan would get hurt. jisoo finds a nearby stick and it was tough enough to lift the snake off of his ankle. 

he starts to slowly wedge the stick between jeonghan and the snake's mouth. he continues his actions by getting the snake to bite onto the stick. 

starting lift the snake off of jeonghan's ankle and pushing him away. jisoo successfully got the snake off of him without him getting hurt. but not successfully getting the snake not to bite him. it left a small bite on jisoo's forearm as it slithered away quickly into the bushes.

"AH. ARE YOU OKAY!?" jeonghan yells, he hadn't stopped crying as he looked at jisoo's bite.

"Move," seungcheol says as he presses his mouth to jisoo's bite to suck out the venom. 

"My dad does this whenever I get bit. You okay?" seungcheol asks, "does it hurt?" 

jisoo shakes his head, "nope thank you. and thank you jeonghan for acting calmly while I got that snake. you could have gotten hurt." 

jeonghan nods as he wipes his eyes. the three end their game of hide and seek and return home. 

 

jisoo didn't see jeonghan for the next few years. he had received letters but since his family had caught him trying to leave the castle. he hadn't been able to leave unless he had a knight. 

the knight rarely let jeonghan see him and seungcheol. it made him sad when he'd see him town but couldn't go up and say anything. 

"you miss him a lot don't you?" seungcheol says, one day after school. 

"yeah don't you?" jisoo says, "he was fun wasn't he?"

"im fun." seungcheol says sulkingly, "am I not enough for you?"

"you know you're my best friend. but it felt more complete with us all together. we were all better together." jisoo tells him, "you agree right?" 

seungcheol nods, "then i have an idea."

"let's be knights. if we can't hang out with him outside the castle. we can hang out with him inside the castle." 

and that was when jisoo realized seungcheol was the smartest boy he knew. 

the two started practicing with sticks founded in the forest and fighting till they'd be bleeding. jisoo's parents would be worried when he'd come home with scratches and bruises. 

on jisoo's 13th birthday, him and seungcheol went to castle for training day. where knights would train and prove themselves to the king they could be knights. 

"how old?" a man asked, he had silver colored hair and was broad. he kind of intimidated jisoo. 

"13." jisoo told him, "i'm ready to prove to you guys I can be a knight." 

the knight smirked as he wrote down his and seungcheol's age. there was about twenty other boys and men fighting for a position to be a knight. being a knight was a dream for most. it paid well and you got to live in the castle. 

"this week, you guys will work to prove to show us and the king that you are ready to be knights. you will stay in this room, eat and live here till we decided. you will be tested on your sword fighting skill, fist fighting skill, and knowledge. if you back out. you back out. got it?" minhyuk says, he was the knight who jisoo had spoke with earlier. 

seungcheol and jisoo made sure they didn't get pinned against each other. they were always both evenly matched and they were in this together. they had to make it to the end.

minhyuk set up teams of twos to practice fist fighting. he explained that when they were put in a situation where they had to use their fists. they wanted knights to be prepared for it. 

jisoo's partner was more broad than seungcheol and had more muscle. he had fiery red hair and dimple in his cheek. he appeared more soft on the outside but jisoo had a feeling he was going to be a hard partner. 

minhyuk handed the two bandages for their knuckles. jisoo curiously wrapped the bandages around his knuckles. 

"ready?" his opponent asked, "i won't go easy." 

"i don't want you to go easy." jisoo tells him, "give me your all."

his opponent came running towards him to pin him down. it was his first mistake because it wasn't the smartest thing to do. what if jisoo had a weapon? what if he had a shot gun? so many things could happen. 

jisoo really did have a chance to win this. he gripped at the mans shoulders pushing him away from him. he stuck his foot behind his knee locking it around his lower leg. 

he managed to get the man pinned to the ground in a matter of seconds. "your first mistake was darting towards me." jisoo says as he stands.

him and seungcheol rejoice in their wins cause they'd soon be reunited with jeonghan. 

the week was dreadful. jisoo was near starving and only drank water and barely ate. he managed to eat some grains to have strength. he fought and educated himself as much as he could. he had a busted lip and bleeding knuckles.

at the end of the week, jisoo and seungcheol along with six other knights were sworn in with the royal family as the witnesses.

"Jisoo. do you swear to protect and remain loyal to the Yoon family? will you risk your life to keep them safe and along with the citizens? do you swear to live healthily and do what they need you to live loyally as a knight? remain educated and courageous to this family and the citizens? do you swear? do you swear to keep your promise to the king and protect his son jeonghan everyday?" 

jisoo nods as minhyuk taps his sword to his shoulders then his head. he sticks his hands out as minhyuk sets the sword in his hands softly.

"jisoo hong, you are now a knight to the Yoon family and jeonghan yoon."

jisoo felt his tears paint his face as he curls his blood crusted and bruised fingers around the metal of the blade.

he will live to be the best knight for yoon jeonghan. he will always protect yoon jeonghan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> should i do everybody's backstory of becoming a knight? it'd be shorter than this but since jisoo and seungcheol were the first Knights to protect jeonghan I wanted to give the full detail


	3. loyalty is what you seek in friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "loyalty is the most important virtue in a knight. however, it is important to know who one should be loyal to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> somebody gave me the idea to write a chapter on jeonghan's reaction to jisoo and seungcheol becoming knights here ya go

"jisoo. do you swear to protect and remain loyal to the yoon family? will you risk your life to keep them safe and along with the citizens? do you swear to live healthily and do what they need you to live loyally as a knight? remain educated and courageous to this family and the citizens? do you swear? do you swear to keep your promise to the king and protect his son jeonghan everyday?" 

jisoo nods as minhyuk taps his sword to his shoulders then his head. he sticks his hands out as minhyuk sets the sword in his hands softly.

"jisoo hong, you are now a knight to the yoon family and jeonghan yoon." 

jeonghan smiles as he watches jisoo accept his sword with a tear stained face. next was seungcheol to accept his sword and jeonghan hasn't seen him that happy in awhile.

"jeonghan, do you have anything to say to your knights?" minhyuk asks, "any encouraging words?"

jeonghan stands and rubs his hands on his thighs, "jisoo and seungcheol, ah, let's do well together okay?" 

jisoo and seungcheol agree with a wide smile, "okay."

after the other 4 new knights for his father are swore in. they have the congratulating dinner where the knights eat with the staffing and royal family. 

jeonghan was nervous to approach jisoo and seungcheol. he hasn't been with them in over 6 years. what if they didn't like him? what if they were over being his friend?

"are you just gonna stand there and look blankly?" a voice calls out, "you really haven't changed have you?" 

jeonghan pivots to face seungcheol. he's grown a lot and his build was bigger. 

his black bangs were covering his forehead, jeonghan wanted to tell him to cut his hair before it got in his eyes. 

his lips were rosy as he sucks on his bottom lip. his cheeks were flushed it looked as if he just ran over here.

"you look lost. you okay?" seungcheol asks, "you good?"

jeonghan couldn't help himself from throwing himself into seungcheol's arms. he almost knocked him over from how hard he pushed him.

"whoa whoa whoa." seungcheol laughs as he holds onto jeonghan, "breathe." 

"i missed you guys so much." jeonghan says in his shoulder, "it's been so long."

seungcheol manages to uncoil himself from jeonghan's grip, "hasn't it? are you going to eat with jisoo and i?"

"yeah! if you guys don't mind. i didn't want to intrude." jeonghan mumbles 

seungcheol couldn't help but laugh, "we are here for you." 

jeonghan rolls his eyes as he follows seungcheol to the food placements of all the foreign foods. 

"ive never seen so much food in my life." seungcheol gasps, "wow."

jeonghan can't help but laugh at his reactions, "get as much as you want."

seungcheol picks up a fruit, "what's this!?"

jeonghan looks into seungcheol's hand, "this? seungcheol it's a peach. ever had it? it's really sweet."

"it's fuzzy. is it suppose to be fuzzy?" seungcheol asks, "is it like old?"

"no no. it's healthy and ripe! bite into it and just tell me how it is." jeonghan explains, "it's my favorite fruit. it's really good!"

seungcheol crinkles his nose as he takes a bite out of the peach, "it's sweet."

"it's suppose to be, seungcheol ah." jeonghan grins as he leads seungcheol to more of the food.

his reaction was cute to all the foods he has never seen. he was eagerly eating and even feeding jeonghan as he went along.

the two found a table at the end of the staff and knights. he saved a seat with them for jisoo whenever he arrived. 

"jisoo!" seungcheol yells across the dining hall, "over here!"

jisoo cocked his head and waved, "be there quick!"

jeonghan felt as if this was a dream. he didn't think in a million years that he would cross paths again. when jeonghan was younger he got in trouble from trying to run away into town.

his dad told him that it wasn't a place for him. that future kings don't indulge themselves in wishes as living freely as a citizen.

he was scolded by his parents and wasn't allowed to leave for town without a knight. he hated it that it went on for 6 years and jeonghan hadn't stopped thinking about them since. 

he missed hanging out with those two. his brother is 6 years old and they can't really find anything to do. but with jisoo and seungcheol he could relate to them.

"jeonghan ah." jisoo snaps, jeonghan snaps out of his thought process.

"thinking of me?" jisoo says sarcastically, "lost with my beauty?"

jeonghan snorts, "you're so full of yourself."

jisoo highfives seungcheol, "im in the presence of a prince. i have to be on my best behavior!" 

jeonghan groans loudly at his behavior. jisoo has gotten cocky since jeonghan has last seen him. it was so different to compare his behavior from now to when they were 8.

"so i have a question." jeonghan says, "and i need your honest answers. okay?"

jisoo and seungcheol nods even though their mouths were filled with mashed yams. jeonghan wanted to laugh at how innocent they looked. 

"why did you guys become knights all of a sudden? what made you want to become knights?" jeonghan asks, "you never spoke about it when we were younger."

seungcheol shrugs, "i was in it for the food." 

"me too." jisoo laughs, "you guys have the best food."

jeonghan pouts, "are you serious?"

"no you dummy. the food here was the last thing i thought about when i wanted to join. i was satisfied with my food back home but this blows it away." seungcheol says with a smile as he bites into the apple. 

"why'd you join then? this isn't the best job in the world or is it the safest. i don't want you guys to be in danger." jeonghan sighs, "it's a tough job."

"we know. we trained 6 years for this." jisoo tells him, "we know what we're in for!"

jeonghan cards his fingers through his hair, "we're avoiding the question."

"do you want us to say it?" seungcheol asks again, "what do you want us to say?"

jeonghan sighs loudly causing his face to drop, "yes! why did you guys train so long to be able to just live your life for just me?" 

"because we missed you." jisoo mumbles, "we missed you a lot."

"what?" jeonghan asks

"yeah.. we trained to be your knights so we could never leave ... your side." seungcheol says, "embarrassing right?"

jeonghan could feel his heart beat increasingly fast against his chest. that wasn't what he thought they'd say. he thought they would say they were just here for a good paying job or a new home.

not that they are risking their safety to just be with jeonghan. jeonghan could cry from the love he was feeling in his chest. 

"why are you crying?" jisoo asks, "do you not want us here?"

jeonghan wipes his tears quickly and shook his head, "i do. i really do!"

jisoo and seungcheol look at each other confusingly, "why are you crying then?"

"i really missed you guys. and to hear you guys say you did this just to always be with me. means a lot." jeonghan whimpers, "i tried everything to see you guys again."

seungcheol pats jeonghan's hand compassionately, "we know."

"that's why we did this. plus there's a lot of benefits of being in the castle. it's a good situation for the both of us." jisoo explains, "seungcheol's mom got really sick around the time of us training. and the king is now paying for her illness and medicines."

"since kids like us can't get expensive medicine. we had to make it ourselves from herbs and potions from the witches in neighboring towns." seungcheol says, "so that really helped."

"that's good. im glad my dad is helping." jeonghan says, "im really glad."

they smile back at jeonghan, "now that we are your knights. what do you want our first duty to be?" jisoo questions, "we follow your orders."

jeonghan arches his brow. he forgot that they were his knights. not his father's knights and that he was in charge of leading these two. 

"let's play hide and seek." jeonghan says

"what?" seungcheol half yells, "i didn't train for 6 years! to play hide and seek on our first day!"

"hey! he's our prince we follow his rules." jisoo argues

"call me jeonghan please jisoo you sound like my staff." jeonghan sighs

"but we are your staff?" jisoo retorts, "and you are a prince."

jeonghan rolls his eyes, "but we're best friends. don't treat me any higher than that." 

"fine. so who's counting?" seungcheol groans, "I can't believe we're doing this."

"I'll be the counter." jeonghan offers as he covers his eyes. he hears the scuffing of jisoo and seungcheol running across the floor. 

after jeonghan finished counting to himself he exited the dining hall to find the two. jeonghan peeked into the bathrooms and the meeting rooms. 

their first floor had many rooms mostly for the staffs and maids. then the second floor was the knights hall and the top floor was the royal floor. 

jeonghan knew that the two haven't ever been in the castle. so they didn't have anywhere to hide it'd be easy to find them. and that was the plan.

jeonghan has hid before from knights or his parents even his brother. he would hide when he tried to avoid his duties and it worked well.

he checked the knights floor where he knew they'd be. minhyuk hyung would show the knights during training where they'd stay. 

"minhyuk hyung! i need help." jeonghan says, "help me okay?"

minhyuk arches his brow, "are you looking for jisoo and jeonghan?"

jeonghan nods with a smile, "where are they?"

"your room." minhyuk says, "you guys really are kids."

"thanks hyung!" jeonghan screams as he runs up to the royal floor. he could always get the knights on his sides. 

jeonghan heard his doorknob jiggle as he approached his room. he could hear jisoo giggling with seungcheol. 

"he's going to hear you if you don't stop laughing!" seungcheol groans, "shut up."

"look how tiny he is." jisoo laughs, "he was missing teeth!"

jeonghan sighs as jiggles the knob quick enough to get it to unlock. seungcheol was draped across jeonghan's bed and jisoo was crying at jeonghan's baby pictures.

"OUR HANDSOME FUTURE KING!" jisoo cackles, "who did your makeup jeonghan ah?"

jeonghan feels his cheeks flush incredibly quick. jisoo was laughing at picture of him dressed up as his mom. he wore a tiny tiara and a skirt with a fake full of makeup.

his hair was long as a kid and is still longer than any boys normal length. so he pulled off dressing up like his mom really well.

"don't be embarrassed. it's cute." seungcheol says, "you're a cute kid."

"his cheeks are going to burn off. it really is cute though jeonghan." jisoo smiles, "but i guess you found us!"

jeonghan nods, "but i don't want to pay another round. i have an idea."

the two knights cocked their heads, "what do you want us to do?"

"let's take a nap. my bed is big enough for the both of us." jeonghan yawns, "i did a lot today." 

seungcheol scoots to the left side and jeonghan joins him then jisoo fits comfortably behind him.

"this is still unreal to me." jisoo mummers as he sets his arm around jeonghan's waist. 

jeonghan lays on his back to adjust jisoo's arm, "that we're all here together?"

seungcheol faces towards jeonghan with a soft smile. he lays his arm over jisoo's tightly. 

"let's make an oath." seungcheol mumbles, "let's all stay together forever."

"and work well."

"to protect jeonghan."

"and each other, mhm?" jeonghan says, "you can't just protect me. i'll care for you guys as much as you care for me. i want to be a good prince for you guys."

"you'll always be a good prince. you'll lead us well. we trust you." seungcheol tells him, "we wouldn't have devoted ourselves to training if we didn't have trust in you."

"and you guys will always be great knights to me. no matter how many knights i get. you'll always be my number ones." jeonghan smiles

"enough of the sappy talk. let's get some sleep okay?" jisoo says

"goodnight you guys."

"goodnight prince."

and jeonghan that day realized that jisoo and seungcheol are the definition of loyal friends and knights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> platonic hyung line my guilty pleasure


	4. a new dawn a new day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jeonghan finds out a little family history

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who sucks and have been so busy and haven't gotten to update but im working on it ):

jisoo notices that jeonghan has been stressed and more on the edge. the way he denies spending time with the knights and he sleeps a lot more. 

not even that the biggest shock to the knights was jeonghan denying to go on a run with them. he hasn't denied a run since he was 13 and for him to suddenly do it really threw them off. 

"is he okay?" jihoon asks, "he's being incredibly not himself."

"i'm not sure jihoon. i think i'm going to go see how he's doing right now." jisoo sighs, "i'll tell you afterwards so don't stand outside the door okay?"

jihoon rolls his eyes and continues his stroll down the knights hall. jeonghan should be awaking soon if he goes by the usual schedule.

"jeonghan," jisoo asks as he knocks on the door softly. 

he heard shuffling but no reply from jeonghan. he goes to knock again but before he could the door unlatches.

"i was waiting for one of you guys to come check on me. i had a feeling it'd be you, jisoo." jeonghan smiles tiredly as he crawls back into his bed. 

jisoo sighs as he closes the door behind him. he joins jeonghan at the foot of the bed with a soft groan.

"why are you frowning?" jeonghan asks as he rubs his eyes as a child would, "i should be the only one frowning." 

"tell me why then us knights are worried about you, prince."

"jeonghan" he corrects with a laugh, "what have i told you, jisoo?"

"why are you always frowning so often?" jisoo questions again, "tell me."

"because. my father is talking about arranged marriage." jeonghan whines, his lip starts to jut out in a little pout. 

it completely skipped jisoo's mind that as the heir for the throne he does need a wife to sit by his side. he can't lead the country without a leading woman. 

but jisoo couldn't imagine jeonghan being married the thought annoyed him because he knew jeonghan wasn't trying to get married anytime soon. he was too free to be able to be held down. 

especially by a woman he did not know or had any relations with. plus this woman would only be with jeonghan for the crown and because of his powerful family.

"i am not ready to be married." jeonghan tells him, he was bawling the quilts into his fists. jisoo watches as he squeezes the quilts tightly with anger. 

"i know. has he said anything about who you'd be marrying?" jisoo questions, "any names?" 

"lady jieun is a choice. she's pretty but she's a witch." jeonghan explains, "witches kind of scare me." 

jisoo knew lady jieun and her family they were very active in war well her father was at least. they had the best knights (if he had to be unbiased) and some of the most intense assassins in the nation. 

she had also possessed supernatural powers that her family did not. which made her gem and had many suitors wanting her as their queen. 

jeonghan was only scared of jieun because of her powers he wasn't used to somebody with powers like that. she was pretty but intimidating to jeonghan. 

"she's not a witch. she's a princess with powers. you know what a witch is we have some in the cells." jisoo says cockily, which makes jeonghan groan.

"plus you know we have a knight with powers and you love him dearly." jisoo reminds him, which was true jeonghan loved that knight with all his heart even sometimes more than jisoo. 

"i know i know." he sighs before flopping back into bed. 

"are you looking at any wives besides the one your father suggested? possibly lady sojung or lady eunbi? what about the generals daughter juyeon?" jisoo suggest, which gets jeonghan interested a bit. 

"you are actually encouraging the marriage?" jeonghan asks with a confused look, "you really are like my dad."

"don't say that, jeonghan. im saying you could tell your father you're looking for a wife and he could back off and give you time." jisoo says, "i do work for your dad but you're also my king."

"don't say that. that's embarrassing." jeonghan retorts with a pout, "it's really embarrassing." 

jisoo laughs at the blush on his face, "what is the idea of being king actually setting with you?" 

"'no it's just embarrassing hearing you say that. don't ask why but it got me really flustered." 

"sometimes you can be charming, jeonghan. i don't get why you're stressed about finding a wife." jisoo states, "ladies will be waiting for you everyday."

"it's not that i'm stressed about finding a wife it's just stressful that i might not be able to provide for my future wife." jeonghan mumbles, "plus i don't want to have multiple wives either."

"it's just political tactic. your fathe-" jisoo says, he realizes that probably wasn't his area to step in. 

"my what?" 

"nothing." jisoo quickly says, "nothing at all, my king." 

"jisoo."

"mhm?" jisoo mumbles as he tangles his fingers in the sheets. 

"what about my father?" jeonghan repeats, his voice was rough and stern. it kind of scared jisoo how serious he was. 

"don't do this." jisoo whines with a small pout. 

"you are my knight and you listen to me and follow my rules and orders. tell me this instant what you were going to say!" jeonghan half yells, "tell me!"

jisoo rolls his eyes he hated when jeonghan would pull that against him. he felt like this topic wasn't for him to step in.

"your father has more wives than just your mother," jisoo mumbles, "it's just not only your mom." 

"what?" jeonghan whispers with a confused look. 

"your dad has i think two wives? maybe 3?" jisoo says, he chews on his lower lip as he tries to recollect his thoughts. 

"how do you know?" jeonghan asks, "you could be lying!"

"why would i be lying to you, jeonghan? i would never lie to you about this serious of a conversation. your mother is not the only queen in this nation. his 2nd wife is not in the castle but there's another one nearby." jisoo explains, "she's a very nice woman."

"let me meet her." jeonghan says sternly, "this instance let me talk to her." 

"that is tricky to make happen, jeonghan. your father might no-" 

"i don't care what he may or may not like, jisoo. he has been lying to me for over 21 years don't you think that i deserve this?" jeonghan questions with a blank look, "to meet my fathers other wives." 

"let me go talk to the other knights okay? and we can try and figure something." jisoo groans as he pulls himself off of jeonghan's bed. 

jeonghan waves goodbye and mentions how he hopes he'll hear from jisoo soon. he shuts the door quickly before letting out a loud groan.

"so what are you going to do?"

jisoo almost falls at the sound of seungcheol's voice. seungcheol was sitting across from jeonghan's room with an apple in hand. 

"why do you always do this!?"

seungcheol had a history of listening to conversations. he would say it was his business to know anything and everything about the prince but also because he would get "bored".

"i overheard his yell and how you screwed up. you know the king was planning to tell jeonghan about his two wives since they didn't live in the castle. how do you think he's going to react when he finds out he already knows?" seungcheol asks, before taking a large bite out of his apple. 

"i don't know.. but i need your help." jisoo whines, "please."

"of course," seungcheol mumbles, "i wouldn't leave you hanging."

jisoo relaxes at seungcheol's words because he thought he'd have to do this alone. maybe some of the other knights could help the two out? 

"but we'd have to ask some of the others to help us out. we can't manage to smuggle jeonghan without help from anybody else." seungcheol states, "we can't pull this off by ourselves."

jisoo hears jeonghan's door creaking open slowly, "so when are we doing this?" jeonghan whispers excitingly. 

"what's with the two of you listening into conversations?" jisoo groans loudly, "i told you id come back and tell you what the plan was!"

jeonghan had already had a navy blue cloak similar to the knights drapped around him. his clothes were similar to the citizens and he blended in well. 

"he came prepared." seungcheol chuckles with a smile. 

"when don't i, hyung?" jeonghan grins as pulls up the hood of the cloak. 

"what knights should we bring?" jisoo pipes up, "we have to figure this out."

"i say we bring chan, junhui, soonyoung and mingyu. wonwoo, hansol, minghao, seokmin, seungkwan, jihoon stay behind. if we spilt soonyoung and seokmin it'll be easier to sneak out." seungcheol says

"and jihoon and wonwoo are good with the king and same with hansol and minghao. seungkwan knows the routes and so does seokmin. they've done this before and they're really good at it." jisoo praises, "almost as good as us."

"have you notified chan, junhui, soonyoung and mingyu?" jeonghan asks, "are they aware?"

"no, we just planned this like 15 minutes ago. keep up." jisoo teases as he strolls down the hall, "stay with jeonghan and meet us in the basement."

"yes sir!" jeonghan answers with a wide smile that jisoo loved to see. 

jisoo assumed the knights would remain together they usually do. jisoo sees them more than he sees jeonghan. 

he knew they would all be awake since they share the same floor and do the same routines. knowing junhui he'd be helping the court ladies like he always does. 

he was the easiest to find for jisoo he was helping the court ladies clean the bathing hall. he explains junhui the plan of sneaking out jeonghan to find the 2nd wife.

"so we're sneaking jeonghan out? can't we get killed for that?" junhui asks softly as he replaces the petals in the water. 

"no? who told you that?" jisoo asks confused, "we won't get killed."

"did he really not know of queen boreum?" junhui asks, "not one bit?"

"no, i accidentally spilled it to him today and he demanded to meet her." jisoo sighs, "but just meet us in the basement in 10 okay? i have to find chan, soonyoung and mingyu." 

"okay see you then." junhui says with a smile as he continues to perfect the baths. 

jisoo surprisingly finds chan, soonyoung and mingyu together with jihoon. jihoon had ran into seungcheol earlier and knew the plan. 

jisoo found it kind of cute that chan was excited for his first "mission". he had been a knight for almost a year now and one of the most outstanding knights they've seen. 

"will you guys please be safe?" jihoon says as he grips jisoo's wrist before exiting. 

"i don't beg but this is such a touchy area for you guys to be stepping into. you know how the king feels about queen boreum." jihoon continues with a blank stare, "they aren't on the best terms."

"we will and boreum knows me and we've met. she wouldn't put jeonghan in any danger and i think we both know that." jisoo says, "she's not queen minji but she's very generous."

"i'm not saying she's a bad queen or woman. she's amazing and we all know that but we know the king sees her in a different light. just protect jeonghan and we'll hold it down here, okay?" jihoon says before giving jisoo a quick but embarrassing hug. 

"see you later, jihoon ah." jisoo half sings as he waves goodbye to a blushing jihoon.

jisoo liked queen boreum he never understood why the king treated her so differently than queen minji or the third queen. they were all amazing women with history and grace. 

"ready?" seungcheol asks as they all finally meet in the basement. 

"who's jeonghan riding with?" soonyoung questions, "you know i am with riding a horse with two people."

"yeah he broke my finger last time!" mingyu complains, "took months to properly heal."

"your fault for thinking he could actually ride a horse." junhui mummers 

"can we maybe not fight for two seconds?" jisoo says seriously, "we have to get focused and leave as quick as we can." 

the seven of them huddled together and quickly assigned what jobs they needed to get done and who would be the look out. 

seungcheol would ride with jeonghan. soonyoung, chan and mingyu would ride alongside them while jisoo and junhui were the lookouts. 

the kings knights were last seen inside and assisting the queen and king in any duty they needed done. they rarely went outside as much as jeonghan's knights did. 

jisoo was aware of what time they'd leave and enter the castle. that left them about 20 minutes to get out of the castle before getting caught.

"see you outside the walls, right?" jeonghan asks as seungcheol pulls up his fallen hood. 

"yep! be safe you guys. listen to seungcheol okay?" 

"see you later hyung." chan smiles as the five of them ride off towards the front gate where wonwoo was located for his afternoon post.

"how do you think jeonghan will react to the 2nd wife?" junhui questions, "do you think it'll be good?" 

"yeah," jisoo says as he watches his boots crush the flowers barely blooming out of the ground. 

"just yeah?" 

jisoo nods with a small smile, "just yeah. he won't know how to react when they meet."

junhui nods in agreement as the two quickly finish up the lookout before meeting up with the rest of the knights. 

wonwoo had managed to supply another horse for the two so they can make it officially look like castle business. rather than fulfilling a wish that they should have just ignored. 

small kids awed at the knights and mothers wished the knights a safe trip. the knights loved seeing the mothers cause they'd bring gifts and snacks for them and jeonghan. 

jisoo's favorite moment of the mothers greeting them was when one brought him cookies and said that he was her sons favorite knight and she wanted him to grow up well like jisoo. 

jisoo loves when kids want to be like him it's just that sort of pride he can have on his chest. it was a very nice feeling to have with him constantly. 

"jisoo, do you know how to get to her?" jeonghan asks as they get far enough where he can take off of the hood. 

"we'll be there soon." jisoo says as he recollects his thoughts. 

"how exciting," jeonghan cheers loudly, "have you guys met the second wife?"

the knights all nod minus chan. since chan was the youngest he hadn't gotten to meet queen boreum cause of wrong timing. 

"chan was the last knight to be sworn in. the king hadn't found the right time to introduce him to the other wives since you've gotten older." mingyu says, "we all got introduced on certain missions."

"is she pretty? as pretty as my mom?" jeonghan questions

"nobody can be prettier than minji!" soonyoung claims, "she's the prettiest in the land!"

"everybody knows you had a crush on her as a kid." mingyu teases, "that's the only reason why you became a knight."

"is it really?" junhui gasps, "that's so cute!"

soonyoung tightens the reigns on the horse, "he's lying! i did not become a knight for her!"

"then why did you become a knight, soonyoung?" jisoo asks curiously because he really didn't know why the others were knights. 

"i only have my mom and my dog left in my family. i wanted to finically support her and buddy!" soonyoung says defensively, "what about you, mingyu? huh?" 

"i always liked how the royal system function. learning about it was my favorite part in school." mingyu admits proudly, "what about you chan?"

"jeonghan hyung!" chan proclaims with a grin, "he was the main reason why i wanted to work for him."

"jisoo and seungcheol did it because they were too clingy with the prince." soonyoung teases with a small smirk. 

jisoo rolls his eyes before he announces that they had arrived at the queens home. it was a large open area of grassy fields with stands offering numerous foods and jewelry. 

the palace was large heavily decorated with gold and other smaller more detailed designs. jisoo thought it was beautiful and a great place to be. he loved this place. 

"this is so beautiful." jeonghan says

"agreed." chan mummers, "the gold is so shiny."

the six of them gain stares and muffled whispers. they were unrecognized in this side of the nation and they dress differently compared to these knights.

"jisoo you go to the gate and notify them." seungcheol suggests, "we'll stay here."

jisoo agrees as he hands the reigns over to junhui. jisoo dusts off his uniform before stepping forward to the knights at the gate. 

"jisoo hong. knight of the yoon household. we are here to see queen boreum." jisoo announces with his hand upon his chest. 

boreum's knights side eye each other before unlocking the gates. jisoo waves to the rest of them to notify that they're allowed inside. 

"could you guys watch over our horses?" jisoo asks, "we won't be here too long."

jisoo starts to help jeonghan off the horse and removes his cap. seungcheol flattens jeonghan's hair quickly and adjusts his clothing. 

"you guys are like his parents." chan snickers, "its funny to watch."

"he has to look his best." jisoo mummers as he tucks a piece of hair behind his ear. 

jeonghan nods, "thank you." 

soonyoung, chan, and mingyu stay behind jeonghan as seungcheol and jisoo lead them up the palace stairs. the court ladies were carrying baskets of foods and soaps he assumed they'd be going to the queen.

"jisoo ah!" a voice calls out

"jisoo!"

jisoo pivots on his feet to see a young woman running in a rose pink hanbok. her charcoal colored hair was falling from difficult knots and twists. jisoo watches as her expensive hair pins hit the ground sharply.

"taeha please slow down." jisoo says as he stops her by the arm, "you can't run around like that!" 

"who's she?" jeonghan asks behind jisoo's shoulder, "she's pretty." 

"this is princess taeha yoon, jeonghan." seungcheol grins, "your half sister."

the hall falls silent nothing but the sound of wood creaking from the court ladies. jisoo moves aside so jeonghan could step in front of his sister and get a better look.

jisoo could see the similarities between the two. dark colored hair and soft ivory skin with unique almond shaped eyes. they both had delicate yet strong features. 

"what's your birthday?" jeonghan asks with a confused look.

"the 5th of october. you?"

"the 11th. so you're only 6 days older than me, should i still call you noona?"

"no! no! that's too formal but what brings you here?" taeha asks as she wipes her cheeks. 

jisoo watches as jeonghan lunges himself to wipe taeha's cheeks softly with the pad of his thumb. it was nice and different to see jeonghan react this kindly towards his new sister. 

"my knights brought me here to meet my fathers second wife." jeonghan says with a smile, "didn't know id have a pretty sister as well."

jisoo knew that maybe what they shouldn't have done what was already happening. but seeing jeonghan this was happy was worth any type of punishment the king could give them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jeonghan actually has other siblings life is crazy!


	5. you don't chose your family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jeonghan meets his siblings and the queen but he has a surprising twist of faith.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so far jeonghan has two sisters and five brothers what a mess and it's only starting.

"what if she doesn't enjoy me?" 

"she wouldn't dare not enjoy your company, prince." junhui says reassuringly 

"but what if i don't match up to her other children? we've met taeha but what about my three other brothers i haven't even met yet?" jeonghan sighs as he leans against the wall, "what will they think of me?"

"you need to not be so afraid, jeonghan. taeha really likes you and the queen is a generous and kindhearted. when have you ever cared about what anybody thought of you?" seungcheol asks 

"but this is different." jeonghan declares, "and you know it!"

"how is it different?" chan asks confusingly, "you're the most confident carefree person I know."

"because that's with people i don't care to make an impression on. this is my family who have no idea who am i but just who my father is. that isn't a little nerve wracking to you?" jeonghan yells, "im scared! okay!?"

jisoo reaches his hand out to pat jeonghan's shoulder softly. his cheeks were flushed and his eyes were becoming glossed over with tears. 

"jeonghan, you can't be scared. this is your family and they'll accept you wholeheartedly. you can't let this incident scare you." he says calmly, "you can't let this overwhelm you."

"he's right! you have to go in there and be headstrong like always!" soonyoung tells jeonghan with his fists bawled up in a fighting stance. 

"you can't ever let these situations scare you!" mingyu jumps in as he pushes soonyoung's fist down. 

"they're right. come on she'll be requesting to see you soon." jisoo tells him as he takes his stance with seungcheol to lead them. 

the court ladies parted themselves out of jisoo and seungcheol's way. after running into taeha, the queen had issues a lunch in for the knights and the homecoming of jeonghan. 

jisoo and seungcheol both held open the doors for jeonghan and the rest of the knights to the dining hall. 

there was a long mahogany table filled high with foreign fruits and foods. drinks were being set out for everybody and the aroma was overwhelming and mouthwatering. 

jisoo recognized taeha near the head of the table alongside jeonghan's brothers. the queen hasn't arrived yet but her children waited patiently. 

"jeonghan!" taeha grins as she pats the chair near her. 

"so you're jeonghan?" jeonghan's half brother kyesang asks.

jeonghan bows quickly, "nice to meet you, hyung." 

"how'd you know i was older? what if i was younger than you?" 

jisoo watches as jeonghan swallows loudly because he was caught off guard. jisoo couldn't have prepared jeonghan for how his family would react to him. 

"kyesang hyung, i prepared him before coming here and i told him a little about you." jisoo pipes up, "he wasn't trying to offend you in anyway!" 

kyesang smirks before relaxing into his seat, "you're a sharp one, jisoo." 

"did you tell him about me?" jeonghan's 2nd brother, sanghyuk asks. 

"of course, hyung! how could i avoid talking about you?" jisoo teases as he takes a seat near jeonghan. 

"jeonghan, i am sanghyuk thats kyesang hyung and there's taeha and then there's doojoon hyung. technically you're the youngest out of the four of us." sanghyuk explains as he flings a piece of ham into his mouth. 

"you aren't suppose to eat yet!" taeha whines, "wait till mother arrives."

jisoo couldn't help but laugh at the dynamic between these four. jeonghan would fit in perfectly well with them if he didn't limit himself from interactions. 

"so," doojoon finally pipes up, "jeonghan what made you want to come meet us?"

he watches silently over jeonghan as he awaits a reaction for him to say something. he's never seen jeonghan act this way or have to think things through. jeonghan is the type to just say whatever comes to mind and he wasn't doing that anymore. 

"he wa-" 

"let him talk, jisoo." kyesang says, "he has a voice doesn't he?" 

jisoo never truly liked kyesang if he had to be honest. he could possibly be next in line for the throne and jisoo hated that. he wasn't the type of king he wanted to see rule. 

"i-i. i just found out about this part of my family earlier and took it upon myself to meet you all." jeonghan explains, "felt it as if it was the most respectful thing to do."

"was it your idea to bring 5 knights with you like we're going to attack you?" kyesung blurts, "or was it your sidekick, jisoo's idea?"

"kyesung hyung, give it a break okay?" seungcheol says, "it's supposed to be a homecoming event."

jisoo never understood how seungcheol could be so brave and bold towards   
kyesung. 

he has faced murderers and robbers and witches but god forbid he's in a room with kyesung. he wouldn't know what he'd do if he was in that situation. 

before they could continue any type of situation the doors were opened again by the ladies. 

everybody arose to their feet with their heads bowed which left jeonghan confused. jisoo grabbed jeonghan by the arm and held his head down for a bit. 

after the queen had sat down she instructed the rest of them to join her. queen boreum sat proudly at the end of the table with a small smile. 

taeha was spitting image of the queen. the same ivory skin and high cheekbones with rosy lips. queen boreum looked young for age and for having 4 kids she was a great representation of beauty. 

her hanbok was an olive green with expensive threads of pink and gold sew in. the queens makeup wasn't heavy and complimented every feature well. 

her thick ebony hair was braided and twisted high up with shiny gold hairpins with rubies glimmering under the lights. if jisoo had to admit she was one of the most gorgeous people he's ever seen. she didn't seem real to him.

"hello," queen boreum says with a smile making sure to look at everybody, "have you all behaved nicely?"

"yes mother we have! jeonghan has gotten along with the boys and the knights are so well behaved." taeha pipes up, "we've all been well."

jisoo shoves jeonghan a little underneath the table with his foot. he wanted jeonghan to introduce himself and not act as if he's never spoken to somebody in his life. 

"it's really nice to meet you, queen boreum. i sincerely apologize for the intrusion and never formally introducing myself." jeonghan states as he bows his head quickly.

boreum laughs quietly at the sight of a flustered jeonghan. his cheeks were a flushed red as he raises his head up. 

"i am glad you're here with us today, jeonghan. please enjoy the meal and your time here." boreum says before she sips out of her wine glass. 

the twelve of them quietly ate together only thing that filled the room was clinking silverware and liquid being poured in glasses. 

jisoo found the silence overwhelming and uncomfortable. he wanted to control the silence but he couldn't find anything to say during the dinner. 

"jisoo and seungcheol ah," boreum repeats 

"mhm?" he says with a mouthful of food, "what would you like, queen?"

"i just wanted to just say you two grew up really well and have both led your collages tremendously." she tells them, "you've matured since our last meeting."

jisoo ignores jeonghan's eyes piercing at him as he nods in agreement. he hasn't been into this palace since the last fall and he could agree he has grown a lot.

"wait mother, they haven't been here in almost two years. what do you mean?" taeha pipes up, "was there a secret meeting!?" 

"taeha, they are fathers knights. they do other activities outside the palaces in secrecy that is their job." sanghyuk chuckles, "we don't have to know everything in the castle."

"but yesuel tells me father includes their family in everything. why aren't we?" taeha snaps, "even daehyuk goes to fathers castle and helps with the government!"

"um, can I ask something?" jeonghan says cutting the tension quickly.

"go ahead," boreum encourages 

"who exactly is yesuel and daehyuk?" 

"your half sister and half brother," doojoon replies, "did your father really shield you that much from us?" 

jisoo watches jeonghan nod embarrassingly. sitting with jeonghan in this moment was witnessing a completely different person act. he was shy and sheltered and had to think about what he was saying. 

"now, im confused. how did the knights know about us and our whole entire family line before jeonghan? when he's actually our brother." sanghyuk questions, "it doesn't add up."

"somebody else besides jisoo explain cause he's been talking all dinner." kyesang says, "one of you."

jisoo rolls his eyes as he settles back into his chair. him and kyesang were destined to never get along. jisoo was at the point where he didn't even care cause kyesang was not his prince. 

"well, apart of our training we had to learn the history. or at least be aware and our trainer told us about you guys. our trainers told us about queen boreum and queen youngah." chan says, "he told us how you live in separate places and but still contact and get together for social issues."

"And if it's a certain issue expressing a certain prince or princess the respective mother will be there." mingyu chips in, "it depends on the situation."

"is that why i haven't seen any of you till now? since it only follows under a certain mother unless it's a nation situation?" jeonghan asks, "cause i do not recognize you from any event."

"wrong. we were there awhile back for your leading of nations meeting. remember that? you stuttered through your entire speech." kyesang chuckles, "i definitely remember." 

"prince kyesang!" jisoo yells, "can you tone it down?" 

everybody's eyes fall on jisoo with a confused look. their eyebrows furrowed and jisoo could see seungcheol's eyes with a shock. 

"tone what?" kyesang says, "what we're going to say?"

jisoo stands up setting his hands firmly on the table before him. he takes a even breath before preparing himself for what punishment he might be getting. 

"i get you're older and more experienced than the prince. we all do and we know your confidence is amazing. but do you really have to ambush at him every chance you get?" jisoo questions, "what are you gaining from that?"

"continue." kyesang replies with a smirk resembling to a bear who found a new prey. it was intimidating but jisoo couldn't stop now.

"i just don't understand. this whole dinner that was suppose to be nice and introduce the prince to you. but you've turned into an attack on him and his self esteem." jisoo states, "you're his brother, you share blood and you're treating him so hatefully." 

"half brother," kyesang tells him, "half brother only half of blood."

"he is still family, hyung." sanghyuk mummers with a small shove. 

"but sanghyuk, you could have made an effort to see jeonghan and his brother moongyu. but have you? have you made the efforts, taeha? or you, doojoon?" kyesang asks, "so why am i suddenly horrible for saying we're only half related?" 

"the reason why you guys haven't met yet is because your father was planning for it this years lunar festival." soonyoung address, "right, queen?"

boreum nods from the head of the table, "you're right, soonyoung. it's where your father would have the princes all participate and not only a few of you." 

"he wanted to find the right time to introduce you. you are siblings no matter if it's half or full. you are family and always will be." junhui states, "it's not good for you guys to fight like this."

kyesang groans before he stands to his feet. he bows to the queen and storms out of the dining hall: almost knocking over a courtly lady.

"i'll go check up on him," doojoon says as he bows before exiting. 

"thank you for coming to meet us, jeonghan. hope we didn't scare you off." sanghyuk tells him with a smile before following his hyungs.

taeha bows quickly before exiting the room in a similar fashion. she didn't even say her goodbyes she must have been embarrassed.

"i apologize for my outburst." jisoo mumbles as he takes his seat. he didn't even have the courage to look boreum eye to eye. 

"no sense of apologizing you were right to defend your prince. kyesang can be out of line sometimes i can understand that. jeonghan, i hope he didn't scare you off to not want to see us again. i truly hope to see you return again." boreum says before standing to her feet. 

the knights and jeonghan stand with her and bow solemnly. boreum holds her hanbok as she exits with court ladies following. 

"that was fun! was it not?" jeonghan groans letting out at a strangled sigh. 

"nice to see you return to your normal self." mingyu chuckles as he tosses a piece of fruit at jeonghan. 

 

"sorry for embarrassing you." jisoo says with a frown, "i should have held my tongue."

"you didn't embarrass me. i am just glad you said something before me. kyesang is a lot to deal with. is he always like that?" jeonghan questions, "or no?"

"me and kyesang get along well. he likes chan and soonyoung. mingyu is getting there and he has something against jisoo. nobody really knows why though." seungcheol explains, "they're always just bickered."

jisoo nods, "something about me irritates him."

jeonghan shrugs with a grin, "guess we can both agree on that." 

jisoo shoves jeonghan a little before standing. it was time for the knights and the prince to find their way home. 

it was later than jisoo had thought and needed to get him back into the castle. he assumes it would not too hard to sneak him into the castle. but the news of them being here would be there before they'd return. 

jeonghan bows and says his goodbyes to the court ladies before getting upon the horse. jisoo squeezes in front of him before saddling up. 

"do you think my father will know we left? like will people even notice?" jeonghan questions as he pulls his hood up. 

"most likely the castle gets really quiet when you aren't there." chan explains, "it's odd."

the 7 of them ride together in almost near silence when they head towards the gate. seeing the king stand tall and proudly alongside some of his knights was intimidating. 

"father!" jeonghan yells as he practically leaps off of the horse. 

his fathers expression softens at the sight of jeonghan running towards him. he pushes his sons hood down before cradling his cheek.

"ah, my son. what have you gotten these knights into?" 

"huh?" jeonghan asks as he stares at the five of them. 

"you went and met my other wife correct? queen boreum?" the king questions, "am i wrong?"

jisoo slides off of the horse slowly alongside the others. when a knight does wrong and is ready to receive a punishment. you kneel and await for what the kings decision. 

jisoo kneels with his hands touching the earth and his forehead resting against them. seungcheol, soonyoung, mingyu, chan and junhui follow in a similar manner. 

"we apologize as the knights of jeonghan yoon. he had requested to see the 2nd wife after a slight mention of numerous marriages. i take full blame on the situation." jisoo yells loudly, "these five were only for protection."

"he is lying, your honor. knights respect and follow each others decision. if he is punished for this and i agree we all are." seungcheol says, "right?"

"right!"

jisoo grits his teeth as he remains kneeled. when in this position you can't see what the king is doing or what he's deciding. it's a never wracking moment and jisoo hated how it was happening. 

"father please." jeonghan begs quietly, "they were only obeying my wish. yeah! they wanted me to stay behind but i ordered to meet queen boreum. and my siblings!"

"is he telling the truth?" the king asks, "he isn't lying to protect you? a prince shouldn't have to protect his knights. it's the other way around." 

jisoo nods from the ground, "he is not lying but we didn't authorize our strength as knights."

"punish us if you want us to learn. we will accept any punishment." junhui says, "we should reflect."

"work with the court ladies for the next few days. it means you can not leave the castle and helps you reflect." the king instructs sternly, "all knights have done this as a minor punishment." 

"thank you, your highness!" the knights yell in unison, "thank you for your forgiveness!" 

the king and his knights collect the horses and enter back into the castle. jisoo along with the other knights return to their feet. 

"why didn't you guys just let me talk you out of it?" jeonghan whines with a pout, "now i can't roam with you guys." 

"you have seven other knights." seungcheol laughs, "you won't miss us when we're in the castle." 

"but thank you. i do appreciate you going out your way to let me meet my family."

they all pivot to bow tauntingly in front of jeonghan, "anything for you, your highness!" 

jeonghan rolls his eyes as he looks down at the row of knights in front of him, "i take it back i don't like you any of you." 

"the feeling is mutual, your highness!" they yell in unison. jisoo couldn't help but laugh as jeonghan runs ahead of them in annoyance.

jisoo would take any punishment if it made jeonghan happy. it was his duty as a knight to keep him alive and happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am tryna work in my run ons and i type in lapslock a lot bc my ideas are quick. i don't have time to make everything look nice so i hope they do and so i hope it doesn't bother you guys. 
> 
> i am tryna work on it and make this story worth reading.


	6. honesty and loyalty are always the key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jeonghan has a lot of things on his mind and getting married is definitely not one of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe guess who's back:)

after the incident with queen boreum, jeonghan found himself with eyes all on him. 

his mother, minji was the least upset with his decision because she agreed that the lunar festival was too far for him to wait. jeonghan knew his mother would always have his side over anybody.

but his father and almost every staff member thought it was irresponsible. but who has the right to deny a child of seeing his family?

since him running away to see queen boreum, the plan on going to meet youngah was put on holt. since half of his knights were on punishment and being scolded by the others. 

jeonghan just needed everybody to stop looking at him. he was used to stares in the castle but now it was just hateful. 

"your highness," he hears faintly behind him. 

it was his father's newest knight, kim seokjin and he was way too handsome to be a knight. 

"yes?" jeonghan says, "let's just talk causally you're older than me and this is weird." 

"ah okay. your father says that lady jieun's family will be here in an hour. the court ladies are ready to help you prepare." seokjin says, "you'll be having lunch and your father planned alone time for you two."

jeonghan can't help but sigh loudly, "i have an hour?" 

"yes, the court ladies are ready at your room if you're ready to bathe and get dressed." seokjin says with a small smile.

"i'm not technically ready to go but i'll be up there soon enough." jeonghan says as he bows slightly to seokjin.

jeonghan walks away from seokjin but he suddenly hears small footsteps. jeonghan turns to see seokjin standing firmly behind him. 

"my father told you to escort me to my room didn't he? i don't have a choice, i have to get prepared now don't i?" jeonghan asks with a furrowed brow. 

"yes and also your mother wants you to cut your hair shorter." seokjin says, "it's a bit too long." 

jeonghan groans as he stomps away from seokjin in a childish manner. he runs away to meet family and suddenly he's on lock down and can't have alone time? 

jeonghan sees about four court ladies waiting outside his room. they have baskets of clothes, shoes, and even hair supplies. 

"i am a functioning adult who can bathe by myself. i will get you ladies whenever i am finished. is that okay?" jeonghan asks politely, "i just want some alone time."

the court ladies nod and proceed to a bow as jeonghan goes into his room. he shutters as he sees jisoo and seungcheol on his bed. 

"took you long enough," seungcheol mumbles as he chews on a apple core. 

"how long have you been up here?" jeonghan asks, "do the court ladies know?"

"no," jisoo says, "we hid in the closet and got here before them." 

jeonghan hadn't seen his knights especially jisoo and seungcheol in weeks. a part of his punishment was only seeing his knights in "professional" settings. since his knights were practically family, his father knew it'd teach him "respect" if he had to spend time away from them. 

jeonghan juts his lower lip, "i missed you guys." 

"oh goodness, you're a baby." jisoo laughs with a soft smile. 

"hey don't act like you didn't miss him either!" seungcheol says, "why else would we be here if we didn't miss him?" 

jeonghan grins at seungcheol's honesty because he knew seungcheol can't lie to him. it's nice to always have somebody honest on your side.

"how is everybody? god being in this castle all the time is sickening. i kind of hate it!" jeonghan states, "leaving to be with you guys kept me sane."

jisoo pats jeonghan's head, "you'll be able to wander around soon. don't stress so hard about it also your dad said it's okay if some of us come to lunch today. with lady jieun?" 

"REALLY!?" jeonghan yells loudly which scares both of his knights, "seriously!?"

"yeah he's allowing me, seungcheol and junhui to sit in since we're the first three and the oldest." jisoo explains, "so don't be so stressed and go get ready we'll be setting up."

"good luck can't wait to see the new cut." seungcheol grins as he ruffles jeonghan's hair before leaving. 

hearing that some of knights would be able to sit with him at lunch made him feel nether. they might not be there for jieun and his 'alone time' but having them at lunch made him feel relaxed. 

jeonghan hurried to undress and he can't help but laugh at how the bath was already made for him. he washes himself quickly and even manages to clean his hair. he had already cut his hair short before but now it was reaching his nape. how short would his mother make him cut his hair this time? 

after soaking in the bath way longer he hears a knock as he dries himself off. 

"your highness, your time is getting shorter. you need to be dressed." seokjin says, "we'll wait till you're semi dressed."

jeonghan sighs as he meets the court ladies in the room. dressing for situations like this was what jeonghan hated the most because that meant he had to wear a hanbok.

jeonghan wasn't totally against hanboks because the sleeves were roomy and the pants were comfy: but the collar adjustments and the tightness of it all were unbearable. 

"arms up," somebody says to jeonghan softly as he stands in front of them. 

they slowly dress up in the hanbok and he sees pieces of his hair falling to the ground. he was really tight on time if they were planning to cut his hair while he had to move around. 

the court ladies finish adjusting all of his hanbok and dusting off fallen hair. his once short bob was trimmed up even cut shorter on one side but he still had his bangs he created. 

"you look so handsome," seokjin chuckles from the back, "lady jieun isn't going to know what to do with you." 

jeonghan forces a small smile as he goes to follow seokjin to the lunch. he just was thinking about how bad he wanted to go back to bed. 

the lunch was outside in the grassy open era underneath the balcony of the kings room. the garden was in full bloom since spring was approaching and it was beautiful. jeonghan saw seungcheol, jisoo and junhui all in their knights armor. lady jieun's father wasn't the most liked man and he has his hands of people out to get him. it only makes for the knights to be wearing their chainmail and platedmail armor. 

"you guys look so official it's kind of freaking me out," jeonghan says as he helps junhui carry a plate. 

"you shouldn't be helping we're setting the table." junhui whispers, "you're a prince remember?"

"but i'm not the crown prince anymore so why does it matter? technically i am the fourth prince." jeonghan explains, "so i can practically do anything."

after thinking for his whole life that he was next in line. he felt free to be able to say he had years before he had to rule after his father. he wasn't under everybody's eye anymore but jeonghan wonders how long did everybody have to wait for the truth to be free? 

"just because you aren't the crown prince doesn't mean you should be doing dirty work! go sit!" junhui orders as he takes the food from jeonghan's hands. 

jeonghan rolls his eyes as he goes to sit at the head of the table near his parents seats. he saw his mother and father walking down to the lawn with the staffing. 

"jeonghan," his mother coos, "you look so handsome and your hair looks nice."

"yeah, the court ladies cut it while i was getting dressed. they were a bit risky but you know me! i'm bad with time management." jeonghan says as he kisses his mother's cheek. 

his father compliments him on his hair before taking his seat. jeonghan watches as seungcheol, jisoo and junhui scurry to the gates to let the family in.

"your highness, the kim family is here." jisoo says loudly, his tone was sharp and serious it was weird for jeonghan to hear. 

lady jieun, her father taeho and her mother yuna all follow behind the knights. jieun's black hair was in complicated knots and instead of a hanbok she wore a more upgraded version. it was a white silk skirt with a lilac top it was twice the size of her body.

her body was shining underneath the sun with the amount of jewels attached to her body. jeonghan along with his family all stood to bow, he held his hand out to help jieun sit. 

her cheeks were flushed as she sat comfortably next to him. jeonghan can't deny that she's pretty dressed up like this for him, it's new for him. 

"welcome, kim family." his father says with a small smirk, "we are happy to have you here." 

"we are honored, my king that you deem jieun worthy to be with your son." yuna says bashfully, "we are thankful for you."

"yuna, your daughter is educated, beautiful, kind and unique. we are thankful you're interested in giving her hand to our jeonghan." his mother explains, "thank you for your sincerity."

"you got your hair cut." jieun says, "it looks nice."

"your hair is huge. doesn't your neck hurt?" jeonghan asks, looking up at the amount of braids on her head. he counted up to seven complicated knots and twists how was she even walking? 

"just a little, but my mom said it's proper for a lady who's almost married to have her hair like this." jieun whispers, "it took three hours." 

jeonghan grimaces at the idea of having his hair done for that long. he can rarely sit still to have his own hair cut. 

"if you don't mind me asking," taeho states, "why are you marrying jeonghan so early since he isn't the crown prince?"

jeonghan lowers his head as he awaits for his father's answer. he found himself wondering the same question, he wasn't sure if kyesang or his other brothers were married or even the siblings he hadn't met. why was his hand the first to be given away to wed? 

"jeonghan needs some time to mature. we thought a woman like jieun would give him that time." 

jeonghan's eyes widen at the statement and if he isn't mistaken he heard a few gasps. was he really that much of a child that his father needed a woman to mature him?

"later in life if he bares children or gets upon the heir. i want him to be at his fullest for this life and he's a bit childish and foolish right now." his father continues, "i need him to better himself."

"fa-"

"your highness, the food is here." a maid says as she ushers the rest of the food to the table. 

numerous plates of food were stacked on the table with foreign food along side korean. jeonghan had lost any type of appetite after his father's comment, he couldn't stop himself from just poking aimlessly at his food. 

he shutters as he feels jieun's fingers tap on his thigh. her eyes were soft and sincere, she mouths 'are you okay?' 

jeonghan shakes his head with a small smile, he mouths 'no but i'll be fine.'

he blankly listens to the adults conversations on marriage. jieun's parents were all for her marrying a prince while jeonghan's mother was hesitant. his father said they'd keep talking and told jeonghan and jieun to escort themselves.

jeonghan takes jieun by the hand as he helps her up out the car. he doesn't let go of her hand as he ushered her throughout the lawn. there was a marble bench that jeonghan had ordered to be made around two years ago. the purpose of the bench was for jeonghan to relax here when he was stressed because he loves flowers. 

"does your dad talk about you a lot like that?" jieun asks, "how you're childish?"

"do you think that i am?"

"you have a child like heart but you're not childish." jieun says swiftly, "you're mature in my eyes."

jeonghan pours his lips as the two sit side by side on the bench. their hands are still intertwined and jeonghan didn't know who would let go first. 

he watches jieun's other palm reach up to her hair as she tried to unknot the braids. jeonghan detaches his hands to follow her hands deep into her locks. they slowly work together to unknot the fake hair and her real hair. 

his fingers sometimes get tangled and he kind of made her cry by trying to yank his fingers out. but he also made her laugh because he was whining the entire time when he was untangling her hair. 

"you cut your hair too?" jeonghan asks as he sits next to her. her black hair was choppy as it was resting on her shoulders, it wasn't even but it was cute. 

"yeah," jieun laughs, "i cut it myself and my mom almost kicked me out."

jeonghan grins at her honesty, "now we kind of match." 

"you've never laughed this much around me before." jieun says bluntly, "are you flustered now, jeonghan yoon?"

jeonghan shakes his head quickly as he raises his hands up defensively, "jeonghan yoon does not get flustered!" 

"you used to be so scared of me!" jieun giggles, "now look us!"

"because you were the first person i ever met who could do what you do!" jeonghan explains with a small pout, "it was intimidating." 

"like this?" jieun says as she grabs a nearby wilting rose off the ground. she cups her hands around the dying flower as she hums quietly to herself. 

the flower slowly sprouts through the lines of her fingers. it grew tall and brighter than it had been before. jieun could bring anything back to life which made her useful to the nation. there was only a few individuals who contain this power it was amazing.

"for you, my soon to be husband." jieun says dramatically as she bows to hand him the fresh rose. 

"you're so embarrassing." jeonghan laughs, "have you met junhui yet?"

"the knight with the pretty eyes?" jieun asks, "nope."

"he's a lot like you but you know different powers." jeonghan explains, "maybe you can meet him let me try and get his attention."

jeonghan stands on the marble bench and waves his hands dramatically in the air to get his attention, "jun! jun!" 

he sees junhui squint his eyes a little before he comes sprinting across the yard in jeonghan's rescue. he was so lucky to have a knight like junhui who'd sprint this quick. he doesn't even know what he needs to be done, but here junhui is coming to his rescue. 

"are you okay?" junhui asks, he tries to catch his breath as he leans against the tree. 

"that run was way further than i thought it was, a-ah." junhui groans as he sits firmly on the ground. 

"junhui, have you met jieun before?" jeonghan asks while taking a seat back on the bench. 

junhui shakes his head as he gets back onto his knees to bow formally, "greetings, my lady jieun."

"so polite and handsome." jieun coos as she pats his cheek, "hello."

"jieun, she has magic powers too!" jeonghan whispers, "and i told her you kind of do too." 

junhui's eyes widen with shock, "REALLY! YOU HAVE POWERS?"

jieun nods as she shows junhui what she had showed to jeonghan. she brings another dead flower back to life and quickly sticks it into his hair. 

"what can you do?" jieun asks, "it's rare when you meet a knight with supernatural powers." 

junhui stands up to search for another dead flower. jeonghan felt like a dad everytime junhui showed what he could do. junhui has grown a lot from when they first met, he was always insecure about his abilities and so angry at the world. but he's now proud of what he can do for the world and loves to share it. 

he cups his hands around the dry daisy as he hums a similar tune. the flower starts to grow similar like the roses did when jieun brought them to life. 

"w-what? you can do what i can do?" jieun stutters, "how is that possible? there's only two other people in the kingdom who can? h-."

"and now you're wondering what exactly is my power?" junhui says cockily, "you're confused how i knew you were going to say that.

jieun grabs onto jeonghan's wrists tightly as she shakes it slightly, "how is he doing that!?"

"junhui has innate capability where he has the ability to know or understand something without the need of studying or having previous experiences. so while he watches you bring a flower back to life he now knows how to do it as well." jeonghan explains proudly, "he's a gem to my knights."

junhui blushes softly, "hyung." 

"don't be shy!" jeonghan teases as he goes to pinch at junhui's cheeks, "you learn so much to be a great contributor to us. i have to talk well of you everyday." 

"you're like a dad." jieun snickers, "how do you deal with him, junhui?"

junhui shrugs, "don't know but hey i have to go back to everybody. her parents are preparing to leave so you should come back."

jeonghan nods as he helps jieun off of the bench. she collects her fallen braids and she quickly runs to junhui to have more of an explanation on who he is. 

the three of them reunite with jisoo and seungcheol who were caught up in conversation. jeonghan felt better once returning with jieun. he wasn't ready to marry her yet if he had too but her company wasn't so bad.

"did you enjoy yourself, jieun ah?" yuna asks as she tries not to yell about her hair. she strokes her head lovingly even though jeonghan can see her yank at a strand of it. 

"yeah, we had a lot of fun." jieun smiles, "thank you for asking."

"what about you, honey?" his mother asks, "how was it?"

"jieun is fun to be around she kept me relaxed and made me laugh. it was fun." he says with a small smile, "thank you for coming to spend time with me."

the two bow before the knights go to escort them out the garden. his father and mother explain how they'll think on the marriage and if he's ready. his mother musters up a small apology about his father cause they both knew he wouldn't apologize. 

jeonghan kisses her, "it's okay, mother."

she smiles grimly before leaving to go back to her husband's side. jeonghan feels three sets of arms around his shoulders, the heat they were giving was relaxing.

"who's ready for a big nap? i know i am." seungcheol says mid yawn, "that was exhausting plus this armor is heavy." 

"you guys looked so cool in your armor like you looked seemed like real knights." jeonghan teases, "all professional."

jisoo flicks the back of jeonghan's head, "we are knights! i didn't train for six years to have my title mocked!" 

jeonghan laughs as they renter the castle. junhui excused himself to go aid in helping the court ladies because junhui was too nice to deny helping pretty ladies in need.

the three of them go up to jeonghan's bed room on the highest floor. jisoo locks the door as the three of them settle down into his room. 

"how was speaking with jieun? was it so bad?" seungcheol asks as he tries to unbuckle his armor. 

jisoo ends up unbuckling his armor, then his own armor before seungcheol can even continue a conversation. seungcheol flushes before he says a quick thank you. 

"it wasn't so bad? she's changed a lot since we were in our teens and she's prettier and less scary. she had gotten softer over the years." jeonghan explains, "she made me feel at ease."

"do you hear that, cheol? we've gotten replaced as jeonghan's stress relievers." jisoo groans, "he's left us alone."

seungcheol grabs his cheeks in a dramatic fashion, "oh what will we do about our daily naps?"

"i guess we just have to do the unimaginable and nap together?" jisoo gasps as he grabs their armor.

seungcheol goes to unlock the door wide open, "he doesn't need us anymore since he has jieun."

jeonghan groans loudly, "ah! get back in here!"

"we're just tossed aside like trash now since he has a w-"

jeonghan rushes to go to the door slamming it before seungcheol can open it further. the loud crack echoes throughout his room in the silence. 

"don't play around like that.. i could never toss you guys aside for anybody. you're all i have." jeonghan mummers, "don't ever forget that you guys protect me and i protect you. that's how it works."

"han.." seungcheol says softly

"don't say i tossed you aside please. don't even tease like that." jeonghan whines, "you almost made me cry!"

jeonghan looks up with his semi teary eyes and flushed cheeks, "see!?"

"god you're a baby." jisoo laughs quietly, he tussles jeonghan's hair softly before pushing him towards the bed.

"he's our baby, jisoo ah." seungcheol laughs as he sits jeonghan on the end of the bed. 

jeonghan groans, "we get it! i am a baby but could you guys help me get out of this hanbok? it's itchy as hell." 

seungcheol nods as he starts to slowly undress jeonghan out of the hanbok. it wasn't weird to jeonghan anymore for these two to undress him slowly and carefully. they've undressed him after long nights of battles and studying. but also jeonghan has done the same for them after they've worked long evenings till morning. he's addressed their wounds and bruises because that's what they've always done for him. 

after the three of them are dressed to comfort they go to their usual spots in the bed. seungcheol, jeonghan and jisoo all lay closely together under the warmth of the covers.

"you were really upset when we teased you. you need to know that we can't ever leave you," seungcheol says sincerely, as he turns to face jeonghan. 

"he's right." jisoo says following the same action, "we're literally sworn to be with you for the rest of our lives. we can't leave you know."

"way to ruin a moment," seungcheol laughs, "but seriously, han we wouldn't have done this if we didn't ever want to be away from you. we're with you together forever."

jisoo nods as he pets jeonghan's hair. jeonghan respected that neither of them said anything about his whining and his tears falling down his face. they just calmed him down and wiped his tears till he fell asleep. jeonghan had always needed a rock to keep him supported and not only was he blessed with 2. he over the years had gotten 10 other rocks keep him stable. jeonghan doesn't miss the feeling of having to look for somebody to be on his side. 

these twelve knights were sworn in to always be on his side and to always support him: and that's all jeonghan has ever wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAD SO MANY IDEAS FOR THIS AND I HAVE WRITTEN THEM DOWN AND I FINALLY AM GETTING TIME TO BE ABLE TO UPDATE AHHH
> 
> I MISSED MY KNIGHTS AND PRINCE JEONGHAN

**Author's Note:**

> i really liked this au and the way i went with this even though i finished this between 3am and 4am there's probably mistakes but hey! i really liked this.
> 
> if yall like it i'll probably continue it honestly if you dont i'll probably still continue this oops


End file.
